Flexible office space supply has grown by 14% in Toronto in the last 12 months, according to a report by Instant Offices, with demand outstripping supply in this major cultural and financial hub. As more businesses swap the constraints of traditional office space for coworking, serviced, and hybrid space, the city’s double-digit growth is expected to continue increasing.Â
The research shows Toronto’s double-digit growth outstrips several cities in the nearby United States – one of the biggest flex markets in the world – where New York saw a 14% increase and California an 11% increase. Despite the city’s steady growth, desk space in Toronto still more affordable than New York, London and Hong Kong.
In Canada overall, demand for flexible office space has seen significant growth over the last few years as more businesses explore the benefits of shared office space. A strong entrepreneurial culture, paired with a large Millennial workforce, has seen the country’s workplace preferences shift in favour of agile options like remote working and flexible hours. Studies suggest shared office space could account for 20% of total office space in the country within the next decade.
The average desk cost in Toronto overall is $790, while prices vary according to district, with prices as low as $302 in Scarborough, rising to $1082 in the highly sought-after Financial District.
While coworking and serviced office space both saw a healthy 11% growth overall, hybrid space has become a fast-growing favourite with 18% growth. Popular for its mix of shared and private spaces, hybrid space offers all the flexibility of a coworking space with all the amenities of a serviced office, and has become a major trend among corporates looking for more desk space.
Average Desk Cost Overall – $790
| Area | Average Desk Cost |
| Don Mills | $675 |
| Financial District | $1082 |
| Old Town | $1039 |
| Scarborough | $302 |
| Yorkville | $1137 |
Flex space has become a significant disruptor in the commercial real estate industry, and Toronto and Vancouver are two of the country’s most exciting markets to watch. In Toronto, one of North America’s most prominent international business hubs, companies of all sizes are looking to flex space to remain competitive, with creative and tech industries driving a large portion of demand.
About The Instant GroupÂ
Founded in 1999, The Instant Group is a workspace innovation company that rethinks workspace on behalf of its clients injecting flexibility, reducing cost and driving enterprise performance. Instant places more than 7,000 companies a year in flexible workspace such as serviced, managed or co-working offices including Sky, Network Rail, Capita, Serco, Teleperformance, Worldpay is making it the market leader in flexible workspace.
Its listings’ platform Instant Offices hosts more than 12,000 flexible workspace centres across the world and is the only site of its kind to represent the global market, providing a service to FTSE 100, Fortune 500, and SME clients. With offices in London, Newcastle, Berlin, Haifa, Dallas, New York, Miami, San Francisco, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur, The Instant Group employs 230 experts and has clients in more than 150 countries. It has recently been included in the 2018 Sunday Times’ HSBC International Track 200.
